Ingredients

· 8 ears of corn, shucked

· ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling

· 1 medium onion, chopped

· 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

· Salt and pepper to taste

· ¾ cup packed baby spinach leaves

· 4 jalapeños, 2 stemmed, seeded and roughly chopped, 2 stemmed and thinly sliced

· 1tbsp fresh lime juice plus 1tsp extra

Method

Using a thin knife while working in a bowl, cut kernels from the cobs (you should have six cups). Working over another bowl, scrape the cobs with the back of a knife to release the corn milk and discard the cobs. In a large skillet, heat three tablespoons of olive oil over moderate heat. Add onion and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about four minutes or until softened. Add four-and-a-half cups of the corn kernels and corn milk, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the corn is crisp-tender, for about six minutes. Season with salt and pepper then transfer to a blender and let it cool slightly and wipe out the skillet.

Add one-and-a-half cups of water to the blender with the corn and purée at high speed until very smooth, for about five minutes. Strain the purée through a fine sieve set over a large bowl, pressing on the solids. Discard the solids then return the corn purée to the blender and add spinach, chopped jalapeños and a tablespoon of the lime juice, and purée until the spinach is finely chopped and the soup is green. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in one-and-a-half cups of water. Cover and refrigerate the soup until cold, for at least two hours. Meanwhile, in the same skillet, heat the remaining one tablespoon of olive oil. Add the remaining corn kernels and cook over moderately high heat for a minute, stirring occasionally, until crisp and golden. Transfer the corn to a small bowl and refrigerate until cold. Add the sliced jalapeños and the remaining teaspoon of lime juice to the chilled corn kernels and season with salt and pepper. Transfer the soup to bowls and top with the corn. Drizzle with olive oil and serve.